Innocence
by Jaida857
Summary: "This man in front of me, this dying man, had the same dark curls, the same... I don't know, innocence. I could see it as clearly as my skin that still sparkled in the sunlight- he was not ready to die, and I wasn't ready to let that happen either."


**Disclaimer: I don't own Twilight or its characters, credit to Stephenie Meyer. **

**I sincerely hope I got all the details right. I wrote this when my internet was down, so I had to go from what I could manage to find from the books and what I could dig up from my memory.**

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><p><em><strong>Rosalie~ 1935<strong>_

The cold mountain air, tainted only by the smells of the forest, helped to keep my mind clear. It was nice to be able to relax like this, to breathe freely; I had an awful lot on mind my lately. Two years. I had been like this for two years, trapped in this frozen state. What I wouldn't give to change that night. I was so thoughtless, choosing to walk home alone instead of being safe and having my father come and get me. Had he been with me, I would have been in no danger. I wouldn't have been thrown to the brink of death by my own fiance...

I shook my head and inhaled deeply to banish the unpleasant memories. It was over. It had happened, and no amount of complaining could change that. It was much too late for something of that sort. Had I known what I would be cursed with, I would have spoken up and stopped Carlisle from saving me. I was supposed to be grateful- after all, I wasn't dead, at least not completely. My body lived on, while my soul was forever damned. Or at least I believed as much.

After that, I forced myself to stop thinking about that which I had no power over. That was why I had gone. I would be going back to them when I was ready, but for now I needed time to myself, time to think somewhere where my thoughts would be kept private. I wasn't entirely sure where I was at the moment, but that was hardly important. It wouldn't be difficult to find my way back. For now, I just needed somewhere to hunt alone. I was deep in a forest, hidden away in a mountain range, far from any human life. It would be easier that way- I knew even more experienced vampires like Edward and Esme had trouble hunting with the scent of humans around them, while Carlisle of course had no trouble. I however, was still very young, and I didn't trust myself with the temptation.

A faint breeze blew past me, and my teeth bared involuntarily as I caught the scent of fresh blood in the air. It was deer- a whole herd of them by the smell of it. Perfect. That would keep me busy for long enough, and it would give me a challenge. Oh, those herbivores could run as fast as they liked, but they would never outrun me. That was one advantage to my immortality- I was fast, and I liked that. I felt so free when I dashed through the forest at speeds deemed impossible by humans.

I was just starting my pursuit when I caught scent of it. It was incredibly faint, even to my heightened senses, and yet it sent a sharp stab of pain down my throat, as if someone had lit a match inside it.

Blood. Human blood. More to the point, spilled human blood. It was close- much too close. No matter how much control I thought I had, I took a step towards the smell.

Instantly I froze. What was I doing? I was far enough away to run, and I fully well knew that. If I allowed myself to move any closer, my young hunting instincts would take over and whoever had been unlucky enough to venture into these woods would be dead in seconds.

It was that thought that made me take another step forward. I knew it was almost too late now, but I was curious as well as thirsty. Who would be this far in the middle of nowhere, and why was their blood spilled? Another step forward, and I was helpless to do anything but give into my instincts.

It was a short run, about thirty seconds, until I burst into a small clearing, the sun shining bright and hot on my skin, sparkling off it in a most unnatural way. However, that didn't matter at the moment. In front of me, there was a young man, looking to be about my physical age, and he was being attacked by a large grizzly bear. I didn't move for several seconds. Neither of them saw me standing there- the bear was too focused on his prey, and the man was in too much pain to comprehend anything. I could see it was nearly over- he was lying on the ground at the bear's paws, barely moving anymore, blood flowing out of several wounds, still hot and fresh. One more strike and he would be as good as dead.

I didn't think, I just acted, going against everything that should have been true.

I was across the clearing in less than a second. The bear had no time to make sense of what was happening before my hands closed around it, yanking it away from the dying man on the ground. It roared at me, and swiped out, but it merely ripped my shirt. I took half a step forward, sweeping around to its side, and grabbed it once again. There was no fight whatsoever. I was a hundred times stronger than it, and my teeth were stronger still. They buried themselves deep in the grizzlies throat, blood rushing down my throat to sate my thirst. Within seconds, the bear ceased its struggles, the life flowing out of it into me.

When it was dead, I threw it aside in disgust and turned to the young man lying on the ground at my feet. He barely moved, save for the slight rise and fall of his chest and the twitch in his right hand. I could see that his right arm was broken, hanging at a strange angle at his side. In fact, most of his right side seemed to be shattered, but that wasn't what worried me. What had me concerned was the steady flow of blood from his left side. After saving him, I just about gave into my thirst when something made me pause.

It was in his face, I suppose. In that single critical moment, his face showed such a strange mix of emotions, making him look less like a grown man and more like... he reminded me very much of my best friend's child, the one I had been desperate to have one just like. It was strange, thinking about him at a time like this, when that life was far behind me. And yet, it wasn't strange at all. This man in front of me, this dying man, had the same dark curls, the same... I don't know, innocence. I could see it as clearly as my skin that still sparkled in the sunlight- he was not ready to die, and I wasn't ready to let that happen either.

It should have been impossible. I should not have been able to carefully bend down and pick him up in my arms, the weight not affecting my in the slightest. I should not have been able to resist the blood that stained my shirt as I held him, and yet somehow I did. In the second before taking off into the forest with him, his eyelids flickered open just enough to see my face.

"An angel..."he murmured, before they slipped close again. I smiled, and then didn't waste a second as I raced as fast as I possibly could to get back in time.

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><p>I have no idea how long it took to get him back to Carlisle. Time had little meaning for me. The main thing I was focusing on was not killing him. I didn't need to think about where I was going- as if I could ever get lost. The sun had barely moved when I was greeted outside our house by Carlisle and Esme, Edward lingering behind, looking annoyed and hesitant at the same time.<p>

I didn't speak. I couldn't open my mouth at all, because I knew if I did, all this would have been for nothing. I glanced to Edward for help. He sighed, having heard my request, and took his place next to Carlisle. When he spoke, I could see he was struggling to keep his thirst under control. He wasn't nearly as new to this as me, and yet it was still difficult for him.

"Rosalie doesn't trust herself enough to take a breath to speak," he explained, his voice strained as he leaned away from the dying young man in my arms. "She managed to carry him all this way after she saved him from a bear. She wants to change him, but she can't do it herself."

He spoke quickly, knowing we had little time. I looked pleadingly at Carlisle, who was standing there looking thoughtful. At his side, I could see Esme was having more trouble with this than Edward, one tiny hand pressed over her face as she stood half behind Carlisle, unable to take her eyes off of us. There was a slight pause, and then Carlisle sighed and stepped aside to leave me a path to the door.

"Put him on the table inside," he instructed quickly. "We have little time to hesitate."

I nodded a quick thank you and flew past him inside the house, entering into the dining room we never used. I laid the man carefully on the table, wincing as he groaned in pain. When he no longer needed my support, I shot back against the wall on the opposite side of the room, gluing myself to the wall, my lips pressed tightly together.

Carlisle entered the room half a second later, barely giving me a glance, putting his full attention on his task. Out of the corner of my eye, I saw Edward and Esme disappear into the forest surrounding our house, away from the tempting scent of human blood. Carlisle paused in his work to turn to me.

"You've done more than enough Rosalie," he said quietly to me. "I can take care of it from here. There's no need to make this harder for yourself."

I instantly shook my head, my eyes never leaving the man lying on the table. Carlisle didn't have time to argue; I didn't even avert my eyes as he expertly bit into the man's arm, although this brought on new blood, which made me press myself harder to the wall, having not taken a breath since I first picked him up. It was a good thing I didn't need to breathe.

It took a minute after Carlisle stepped back from the table, having done all he could, letting the venom do its work now. The man continued to groan in pain, and then suddenly, he shouted out as the fire began.

Carlisle had already cleaned up the spilled blood, and his open wounds were fully healed. There was nothing left to do but wait two days until the transformation became complete.

"I'm going to find Esme and Edward, if you'd like to stay," Carlisle told me as he stopped at my side, no longer needed in the room. "There is no more blood, and you seem capable enough to resist without it present. Call for me if you need anything."

After a long second, I nodded once, signalling I could handle myself. Carlisle nodded in response, and then disappeared out of the room. For a moment, I didn't move one bit. I could hear his cries of pain echoing clearly in my ears, this nameless man I had saved from one fate, but subjected to another. After another moments hesitation, I opened my mouth, and sucked in the tiniest breath.

It was painful, but not nearly as much as before. This time, with no blood present, I was able to control myself enough to take a step forward, followed by another, until I was standing at his side as he writhed in unbearable agony.

"I'm so sorry," I whispered, although I knew he couldn't hear me. I felt a mix of emotions at my actions- I was glad I had saved him in some sense, yet horrified I had forced this choice upon him. I hoped he would forgive me somehow when he awoke. I needed even that reassurance.

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><p>I waited. For two days, I never moved from that room. Each cry of pain pierced my mind, making me feel even more horrible at my selfishness. I would alternate between sitting next to him, to pacing the room, to throwing a chair into the wall in annoyance with myself. It continued this way, with Carlisle and Esme coming in to see me, and see how he was doing every few hours. Edward kept his distance. He didn't like hearing what was in the mind of someone undergoing the change, nor did he wish to speak with me. I knew he was annoyed with me, and yet, he understood only second to me why I had done what I did. That kept him from being angry. He even came to talk to me once briefly, although he did most of the talking.<p>

"His name is Emmett," he informed me. Emmett... that name seemed to fit him perfectly, my angel stuck right in the middle of hell. I liked the way his name sounded with mine.

When that thought crossed my mind, I checked myself carefully and winced as he cried out again. I was deluding myself into thinking he could forgive me for doing this to him. Not that I didn't forgive Carlisle, but I had done this out of pure selfishness.

"He'll forgive you," Edward told me, making me hiss quietly in annoyance. Now was not the time I wanted him digging through my head, but he continued to speak. "Although I can't get much out of him right now, what with the pain clouding his thoughts, he does remember you. He thought he was already dead when he saw you, dead and gone to heaven."

Edward sounded amused at the last part. I glared at him, and he took the hint and made his way out of the room. Without another word, I turned back to Emmett.

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><p>It was time. His cries had begun to die down, and now Emmett lay there with his eyes squeezed tightly shut, his soon-to-be unnecessary breathing heavy and uneven. The rest of us made no sounds, waiting as the last few seconds ticked by, painfully slow in my mind. I held my breath, in anticipation rather than restraint. There was almost no blood left in his veins, and it wouldn't bother me anymore.<p>

It was very sudden. His breathing stopped, his heart ceased to beat, and he lay perfectly still, not a single twitch in his now perfect body. I counted the few seconds- one, two, three... twelve. Twelve seconds passed, and then his eyes shot open.

They were red. Bright red, shining with ferocity and thirst and fear and confusion all at once. In an instant, he was at the other side of the room in a low crouch, his teeth bared menacingly. Without pausing to think, I took a step towards him, ignoring the protests of my adopted family.

He froze when he saw me advancing slowly towards him, my arms up in a gesture of peace. I took my time walking over to him, moving at an agonizingly slow human pace until I stood a mere two meters away from him. He straightened up out of his crouch, a look on his face I had not been expecting to see.

I don't know what my face looked like, but I suppose it looked an awful lot like his- eyes wide, mouth hanging open in shock, a look of hope in his features. I didn't need to read his mind to know he was thinking exactly what I was:

I was already in love with him. I had been the moment I saw him in that clearing, and now he was seeing me clearly for the first time, and I could see he felt the same.

I felt something in that moment, something I had never felt before, at least not for real. It felt as if all emotions up to this point had been fake, meaningless. What I felt in that moment would stay strong through centuries of hardships, countless times when we would have to look death in the face and stand against it together, as one.

In that moment, I knew I had discovered my destiny in this man standing in front of me, in my soul mate, in my Emmett...


End file.
